Things you didn't know your iPhone can do

2014-07-15T14:38:14Z2014-09-01T03:24:09Z

LOUISVILLE, KY (WAVE) - High-tech tricks are hidden in many mobile phones -- things you probably never thought were possible. Every brand of mobile phone has at least a few secrets; perhaps none more than the industry leader: the Apple iPhone.

People line up for hours to get the newest version. They wait breathlessly for word about what the next generation of iPhone will do, even though many don't even know what the one already in their hands is capable of.

We all know iPhones can talk to you. But did you know that Siri can read your messages to you? Just say, "read my email" or "read my latest email." You can even ask her to search for emails from a specific contact by asking, “Do I have an email from (person's name)?”

Siri will also speak texts to you. To set up that function, go to Settings > General > Accessibility, and turn on Speak Selection. A speak button will then appear any time you select a text.

If you make a mistake while typing a text or an email, shake things up by shaking your iPhone to undo your mistake. Another way to save time: recharge your battery faster by switching to airplane mode. You can also add web suffixes like .com, .net. or .org with a single tap by holding down the period (.) key next to the spacebar at the bottom of your keyboard.

For many, the iPhone is also an iCamera. You can snap a quick photo by hitting the volume button. That's especially handy if something is covering your fingers, like gloves.

And strange tricks, like the ability to find out which planes are flying overhead by asking Siri "what flights are above me."

But there are also tricks you might not want your iPhone to do, like tracking your movements.

Go to Settings > Privacy > Location Services > System Services and then frequent locations to see all the places you've taken your iPhone over the last couple months. Including, which location iPhone thinks is your home.

If that's information you wouldn't want someone to have if they got hold of your phone, simply turn the frequent locations function off.

Learning everything your iPhone can do can wear you out. So to relax you can listen to some music and doze off for a bit. In the timer app, select "when timer ends" then scroll down and select stop playing. Now the timer will automatically turn off the tunes after the length of time set.